My translations are not meant to be verbatim...just illustrative. Be on the lookout, however, for the similar word anima hidding in the shadows. Though both words relate to humans, anima is the "living" part of the person whereas animus is more of the "cognitive" part, vis a vis, body vs. soul.

cdm2003 wrote:My translations are not meant to be verbatim...just illustrative. Be on the lookout, however, for the similar word anima hidding in the shadows. Though both words relate to humans, anima is the "living" part of the person whereas animus is more of the "cognitive" part, vis a vis, body vs. soul.

For what it's worth, it seems that some Romans thought there was a connection between 'animus' and 'anima.' Here Cicero goes as far to say that "animus itself is named from 'anima'":

ANIMA: the vital principle. It can mean, in its most stripped sense, "breath," "wind," "air," and in this way has more in common with the Greek cognate á¼…Î½ÎµÎ¼Î¿Ï‚. All living things, or at least all animals, can be said to possess "anima."

ANIMVS: the spiritual or rational principle. This in the seat of feeling, and therefore of mind and character, even personality; from personality, into self-identification and thence ego, and from ego into arrogance and pride. Not all animals have an "animus," only thinking ones, and Romans would probable relegate that just to humans.

We can understand the anima always to be in operation while a person lives, the life force operating through its autonomic intelligence. But that anima can also drive the formation of and be driven into the animus, the mind, which is an extension of that life force, and intimately connected with it (that is, the "animus" mind has governance and control over the "anima" life-force that brings it into being). The animus however does not operate all the time; there are instances when our minds are clear of thought and our hearts of feeling, and we merely observe; such times include during, say, a car accident when one just reacts, petting a cat, free of thought, or even putting the full concentration on one's breath, as in yoga and meditation. Interestingly, the animus can be deactivated by concentrating on the anima, the breath.